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At an Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) meeting in Singapore last weekend, regional leaders along with their counterparts from three north-east Asian countries—Japan, China and South Korea—took tentative steps toward the formation of an East Asian trade bloc.

Dozens of angry citizens testified Wednesday at a public hearing before the Florida state legislature about Election Day intimidation on the part of polling officials, as well as confusing ballots and malfunctioning machines. The common theme was that they, and thousands of other voters—particularly in neighborhoods with large populations of minorities, poor people and senior citizens—had been disenfranchised.

Three weeks after the American election, with the conflict still raging over who will be the next US president, concern is growing in Europe that a continuing power vacuum in Washington could destabilise the entire world situation.

On November 9, Edmund Stoiber, Angela Merkel and Friedrich Merz—leading representatives of the German CDU (Christian Democratic Union) and the CSU (Christian Social Union)—appeared together on a platform at a demonstration in Berlin held under the slogan “For humanity and tolerance”. The scene was reminiscent of the Mafia godfather who goes to confession on Sunday before returning to his normal criminal activities on Monday.

At least 48 workers were killed and more than 150 injured, some critically, when fire broke out in the Chowdhury Knitwear and Garment factory at Shibpur, near the Bangladesh capital of Dhaka, on the night of November 25. The blaze was the worst factory fire in Bangladesh history. Survivors, neighbours and fire fighters said workers were prevented from escaping death because the only exit gate was locked.

After an initial period of shock at Bertelsmann's decision to break ranks with the rest of the recording industry and enter into an alliance with Napster, there are indications that the major players are ready to do business.

A detailed account by the pro-Republican Wall Street Journal confirms that last week's mini-riot outside the offices of the Miami-Dade County Canvassing Board was organized and financed by the Bush-Cheney campaign and top leaders in the Republican Congress.

The results of Canada's November 27 federal election portend a sharp intensification of class conflict. While big business is pressing for a radical shift to the right, the bulk of Canadians, and above all the working class, oppose the dismantling of what remains of public and social services, the removal of all regulatory constraints on big business, and the curtailing of abortion and other democratic rights.